Dinner of the week! and overdue Double Green tip + Dessert recipe is on the way!

Happy Sunday! I hope everyone else is enjoying beautiful change-of-season weather like we are in MS! Just getting a hint of fall is so exciting- I've been cooking squash, grilling out, burning spice candles and listening to flocks of geese through wide open windows... just typing these things puts a contented smile on my face.  I hope everyone else loves fall weather (or at least fall food) because I guarantee you'll be seeing a fall-ish trend on this blog for a bit (until I get sick of it and turn to Christmas!).

So... how about a SUPER easy Dinner of the Week with a side of Roasted Butternut Squash?

 FANTASTIC Marinated Grilled Chicken
(from the kitchen of one of my best friend's mothers)

Ingredients

Boneless, skinless chicken breasts (you can also buy skin-on bone-in for cheaper and do it yourself- I'll give you tips!)
1 large bottle of basic Italian dressing (brand really doesn't matter- we went totally cheap-o when we did this)

Method

Tips to de-bone and skin chicken breasts yourself: 

Skinning it-

1. TOTALLY thaw the chicken if it's frozen
2. Put a large bowl/container, a large trash can, and a big paper towel roll by the sink BEFORE you start. A strainer is also useful for rinsing the chicken, but not completely necessary.
3. Turn the water on- you want very warm (but not hot) water.  A gushing stream is not necessary, however.
4. One piece at a time, hold the chicken breasts under the water.  There will be a slit somewhere in the skin- try to get the flow to go between the skin and meat there.  This helps separate them.  Place your thumb in the pocket between the skin and meat, and pull.  Discard skin in the trash as you pull.  Once you get the skin mostly off/mostly loose, you can use a paper towel to grasp it better and pull it completely off. 
5. I find it useful to place skinned chicken in a bowl as I finish it, then rinse them all in a strainer and pat them dry with paper towels.  It's easier to cut chicken that's not slippery wet.

Deboning it-

1. Use a slender, serrated knife.  Find the flat bone that runs along one side of the breast.  Slice into the breast as close to it as possible, and try to slide/scrape the knife between the meat and bone across the width of the chicken.  This gets you the majority of the breast.
2. Using a similar scraping technique, cut off the smaller pieces of meat remaining.  Discard the bone in the trash.

Cooking Method:

Fill a tupperware-type container with chicken breasts and pour the entire bottle of dressing over them.  Refrigerate/marinate overnight (you can even do it for two days- YUM!)
When your grill is ready, shake the excess marinade off the chicken, and grill for about 5-8 minutes a side, until no longer pink in the center. 

Roasted Butternut Squash

Ingredients:
1 butternut squash
2-4 cloves fresh garlic, chopped coarsely
1 T fresh chopped or dried rosemary
1 T fresh chopped or dried parsley
1 t fresh chopped or dried thyme
1 t salt
1 t pepper
2 T olive oil
Parmesan cheese

Method:

Microwave the whole squash for about 3 minutes on 70-80% power.  This makes it easier to cut.  Using a large butcher knife, cut it in half lengthwise.  Use a vegetable peeler to skin it.  Peel it until the orange flesh shows and the green veins are gone.  Use a tablespoon to scrape out the seeds.  Slice into appx. 1 inch cubes. 
Toss squash and all other ingredients except cheese in a large bowl.  Line a roasting pan or casserole dish with foil or parchment paper.  Put squash mixture in the dish and back at 450 degrees for about 35-45 minutes.  Ever 10 minutes or so, gently flip and stir the squash.  When it begin to get darker and a little golden, Sprinkle heavily with Parmesan cheese and broil for about 5 minutes.  Squash and garlic should be lightly browned. 

Enjoy!!

Pasta and a Sweet Tooth Treat :)

Sorry for neglecting you for a while! School started not long after my last post, which means my time is much more precious.  I do, however, intend to squeeze a few minutes for this. :)

For the record, I'm quite excited to share this Dinner of the Week with you.  It was SUPER easy, healthy, cheap, and the hubby loved it! Can't get much better than that.  

Pasta Alla Norma (aka eggplant spaghetti) 
from Spicy Food

Ingredients:

1 eggplant
3 cans diced tomatoes
2-4 cloves garlic, chopped
5-6 T olive oil
salt alternative
salt
crushed red pepper
pasta of your choice
Parmesan Cheese

Method:

Slice the eggplant into 1/4 inch thick rounds.  Layer in a strainer, sprinkling each layer with salt, and place a heavy plate on top.  This helps some of the bitter juices to drain out.

In a large cast iron skillet, saute garlic in olive oil.  When it begins to color (it should turn more yellow), drain the tomatoes and add them to the skillet.  Sprinkle with salt alternative and red pepper to taste.  I do about 1-2 tsps salt and 2-3 tsps red pepper.  Allow the tomatoes to simmer, stirring occasionally, for a FULL 15 minutes.  While the tomatoes cook, boil your pasta with a tsp of olive oil until it is "al dente," i.e., done but still a little stiff, not soft. 

Drain pasta,and toss in an oven-safe dish with tomato sauce.  Cover with an oven safe lid or foil and place in the oven on warm. 

Using a paper towel, press and blot eggplant slices.  Saute in the same skillet you used for the sauce, adding olive oil as needed to keep slices from sticking.  Cook them until they are browned on both sides. Place finished slices on a plate while you cook the rest. 

Pull pasta dish out of the oven and lay eggplant slices on top.  GENTLY toss until mixed.  When you serve it, top each plate/bowl with Parmesan. 

Enjoy!! this makes about 4 servings. 

And now for.... Dessert!!!

Easy Lemon Icebox Pie

Ingredients

6 lemons

4 eggs, yolks and whites separated

2 cans sweetened condensed milk
graham cracker crumb crust (bought or made)
cool whip or meringue topping (I'll share how I made my meringue)
1/2 t cream of tartar (for meringue)
1/4 c sugar (for meringue)
Method:

If making your own crust:

place about 8-10 whole graham cracker squares in a large ziplock bag and crush with a rolling pin.  In a bowl, mix with 1/4 cup white sugar and 1/2 c melted butter (add only a little more melted butter if it's too dry.  However, it should be crumbly).  Carefully press into a pie pan, and bake at 300 for about 10-15 minutes, until the edges are golden and it's very fragrant.  Place on countertop and allow to cool.

Zest and juice all 6 lemons in a large bowl. Whisk in sweetened condensed milk.  In a separate bowl, beat egg yolks until the color changes (this may take up to 10 minutes, but the improved texture and richness is worth it.)  Whisk in egg yolks.  Pour into crust.  If making meringue, follow below directions.  If not, bake 15 minutes at 350.

For Meringue topping:

Using about 3/4 of the egg whites, and cream of tartar, beat egg whites on high until they form soft peaks.  add sugar one Tbsp at a time, continuing to beat egg whites until stiff peaks form.  Spread over pie filling, sealing the edges to the crust.  Bake at 350 10-15 minutes, until tips are lightly golden.

Allow pie to cool at room temperature, then store in the fridge.  If using cool whip topping, top AFTER it's cooled. 

What's your favorite pie?  or favorite pasta?  Please share via email or comment, I'd love to hear what you have to say!


till next week, 

Jess

TRIPLE (yes, triple!) Green Tip ;-)

I'm really excited about this month's Double Green Tip!! This one is not only good for your earth and your wallet, but your health. :) (thus, the "triple" green part- it's good for life!)  Today I wanna talk about lunchmeat.  First off, "brownbagging" your lunches for school or work are such a no-brainer money+earth saver that it's hardly worth mentioning.  We've all heard it a thousand times.  But, as I look through the lunchmeat options at the store, I find myself disappointed.  They're all more or less high-sodium (except the rare low-salt honey-ham, which the hubby hates... figures.).  The pre-packaged kind wastes $$ and kills freshness with the plastic packaging, and the fresh sliced deli kind is more expensive and still highly processed.  And the price, regardless of sales, really isn't that great.  Unless you like bologna. (ugh!- I ate WAY too many fried bologna sandwiches as a kid!)
So, I decided to do something different.I bought a whole turkey- a 6 lb Butterball.  The average sodium content for an uncooked whole turkey is usually around 250 mg a serving (source: Butterball.com).  Compared to the average packaged turkey that has about 775, that's fantastic (source: Livestrong.com)! WAY better for your heart and arteries!  And here's my personal favorite part- a small frozen turkey averages about $1-$1.50 a lb, while lunch meat averages $3 a lb!! and if you cook it at home and store it in re-usable containers, you are cutting down on packaging that hurts Mother Earth.
I'll admit, it seems a bit overwhelming to cook a whole turkey (especially when you're a new housewife like me!).  However, by simply following the thawing and cooking times on the package, seasoning it (inside and out) with "No-Salt" and sodium-free cajun seasoning, and "tenting" it with foil once it was out of the oven (to increase moisture), it turned out perfect! After it was cooked, I let it cool down for a good bit (30-45 minutes), then peeled the skin off and carved it.  Freeze portions of the meat in containers, and you've got delicious, healthy, cheap lunchmeat for a month!  And heck, if you want to save even more money, you could do this with a whole frozen chicken, which averages at or below $1 a pound!
How do you save money on your lunches? Let me know!

I hope you all have a fantastic weekend!

Jess

Eggplant Craze!

So, if I haven't mentioned it before, my husband has very slight pre-hypertension (runs in the fam), which fuels a lot of my motivation to cook healthier.  Turns out eggplant is a very heart-healthy veggie- which means I'm trying it out.  I've had it cooked for me by my Ukrainian aunt before, and it was delicious, so I went in expecting good things.  I have no idea why this veggie is feared by children! It's soft, mild, and smooth going down.  and much less intimidating to cook than one would think.  I got this (super easy!) recipe from Spicy Foods by Stendhal, which is a great resource for flavorful ethnic cuisine.  This is a Middle Eastern dish. I adapted the recipe only slightly, to streamline preparation.

Dinner of the Week

Iman Junior

Ingredients:

1 eggplant, with skin on, chopped into 1/2 inch cubes
2 can diced no-salt tomatoes
1 medium onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 c fresh cilantro (or substitute 3-4 T dried cilantro and fresh spinach)
Salt
Pepper (fresh-ground adds a good kick to this dish, buts it's not completely necessary.  A mix of white and black pepper is also a yummy rendition.)
crushed red pepper
several Tbsps olive oil
1/4 c boiling water

Method:

In a very large cast-iron skillet, layer the eggplant, tomatoes, and onions, sprinkling a little salt, generous pepper, and some of the herbs/greens between layers.  Top with red pepper and garlic.  Pour boiling water and a good drizzle of oil over top.  Bring to a simmer with a tight lid or foil seal on skillet, and let simmer for 30-40 minutes, until oil forms a kind of gravy.  Serve over rice as a main dish, or with crackers as a spread for an appetizer.

I hope you enjoy my venture into Mediterranean Cuisine! What's your favorite cuisine?  Do you have any good eggplant recipes to share? Please feel free to comment or email me with answers! And keep checking back for this month's Double Green Tip, I intend to post it later this week. :)

of new jobs and processed peas

I'm so sorry for having abandoned you for the past few weeks.  You see, I just started a new job as the afterschool coordinator at a daycare.  I love it, but it's tiring, and while working there, I've been eating the same processed lunches the kids get and thinking a lot less about food.  But luckily, when the kids start school, my presence won't be required when they serve processed peas and "steak nuggets" (what?!) for lunch.  yay!
But while I've neglected writing, I have thought about you a lot! and I promise to catch you up on the fantastic homemade granola and crockpot chicken soup that happened last week.  :)

Soup first.

In an effort to save money, I decided to buy a whole baking hen rather than boneless skinless breasts, and cook and separate it myself.  Doing so really does save a lot of money.  Rather than spend $8ish on a few pounds of chicken breasts that would last about 1 1/2 to 2 weeks (if I'm lucky), I spent $5ish on slightly more poundage, and got free healthy chicken broth to boot! I got the idea from blog I recently started stalking, The Cheapskate Cook. 

Ingredients:
1 baking hen, thawed, gizzards removed
1/2 an onion, chopped
1-2 c raw/fresh frozen veggies like carrots, celery, turnips, potatoes, etc. (chopped)
1 bay leaf (optional- I didn't use one because I didn't have it on hand, and it was still great.)
2  cloves fresh garlic, chopped
1-2 T each of your favorite herbs/spices.  I used rosemary, basil, oregano, and black pepper.
a sprinkling of salt (added at the end)
water

After removing the gizzards (not difficult at all once the chicken is thawed) and rinsing it, place 1/2 of the onion, herbs, and spices inside the chest cavity.  Place the chicken in the crockpot.  Surround with the rest of the ingredients.  Pour water slowly into the crockpot until an inch or two below the edge. 
Turn it on low for about 6-8 hours, or high for 3-4 hours. Add salt.

You're done!

Once the chicken's cooked, turn off the crockpot and allow it to cool. If you want, you can pull out some of the veggies and meat for a quick and easy dinner (I did!). You get the most out of your chicken if you debone it (save the bones for more broth if you want- they can be used twice); put the meat, bones, and broth each in their own freezer bag and you have makings for lots of healthy chicken-based meals on hand!

and to make soup:

1 1/2 c chicken broth

1 1/2 c water

1 c shredded chicken

1/2 c fresh frozen carrots and peas

1/2 t rosemary

1/2 t ginger

1/2 t salt

1/2 t pepper

1/2 c orzo

Method:

Toss everything but the chicken in a pot and bring it to a slow boil. Add the chicken and boil for just a few minutes so it gets hot, but not flavorless. Enjoy!!

See now, wasn't that easy?  The granola was too :)  I got the base recipe from a blog called Smitten Kitchen.  The best part? It's truly healthy granola, so you can eat dessert for breakfast and not feel guilty. :)

So now for the first .... (imagine me tapping out a drumroll on my keyboard...) Dessert of the Month!!!

Homemade Granola Bars

Ingredients

1 2/3 c rolled oats (NOT the quick-cook kind)
1/2 to 3/4 sugar (granulated, artificial, or brown, it's up to you.  So far, I've used granulated and it's good.)
1/3 c oat flour (easily made by placing rolled oats in a food processor or blender till they're in very small bits)
1/2 t salt alternative (optional)
1/4 t ground cinnamon (optional)
1/4 c Dried fruit, nuts, candy, or cereal.  (So far, I've experimented with chocolate chips, sunflower seeds, Rice Krispies, and dried blueberries, and they're all fantastic.)
1/3 c peanut or other nut butter (I recommend crunchy!)
1 t vanilla (optional)
7 t melted butter or oil (use olive oil or canola butter if you want to be healthier)
1/3 c sweet syrup (i.e. honey, maple, corn, or agave syrup)
1 T water
2 T ground or whole flax seeds (optional)

Method

Line a baking pan longways with parchment paper so that it covers only the center (not the sides), but come up over the edges at the ends. Grease or butter the paper and pan.  Stir together dry ingredients.  Place all liquid ingredients in a microwaveable container and zap them for a couple of minutes on medium power.  Stir the liquids until the peanut butter melts into the rest.  Slowly drizzle into the dry mixture while gently stirring and tossing.  Press the mixture into the pan.  Pack it as densely as you can.  Bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes (until golden brown all over top).  Allow the granola to cool COMPLETELY, and for best results chill overnight in the fridge.  Don't get impatient and cut them warm like I did with my first batch.  Unless you want yummy granola in a non-bar form in your cereal for the next week. ;)  Once they're cool,  use the parchment paper to carefully lift the granola out of the pan onto a large cutting board.  Cut it into squares with a long carving knife or butcher knife.  For ultimate freshness, wrap them individually in saran wrap and store them in a ziplock or tupperware container in the fridge. 

SOOOO GOOD!!

I hope that tides you over till next time.  And if that takes a little over a week, I apologize... My hubby's laptop has to get sent away and fixed, and I don't have one of my own right now 'cause I drowned the last one, so internet access is gonna be a little scarce at our house. :( 

Dinner of the Week- Chicken Burritos

Hello again!

So, this week's recipe is fairly simple, but if you love Mexican food (as I do) I don't think it'll disappoint.  I personally could eat Mexican/Hispanic food nearly every day of the week, and found this to be a nice little twist on regular burritos. 

Chicken Burritos

1 lb ground chicken
1 can diced tomatoes with green chiles
2 T cumin
2 T cilantro
2 t low-sodium cajun seasoning
1 t salt alternative
a few dashes of Tobasco
2 t garlic (fresh or powder, I prefer fresh)
dash black pepper
dash red pepper


Method:

Brown the meat in a large frying pan.  Ground chicken is softer than other ground meats, so it needs to be cooked on a slightly lower temperature (that way it doesn't burn).  Once the meat is browned, add the rest of the ingredients, cover, and simmer for 30-45 minutes. 

Something I really like on my burritos is homemade Mexican rice.

Mexican Rice

1 c rice (white or brown)
2 c water
1 small can tomato paste
2 T cumin
1 t salt alternative
dash low-sodium cajun seasoning
2-3 T of your favorite salsa
1 t cilantro
1 T oil

Cook rice as directed, but add stir in tomato paste with the water.  Once cooked, heat the oil in a large frying pan or skillet, and toss rice gently with oil and rest of ingredients.  Allow to simmer and lightly brown, then remove from heat.

I recommend topping your burritos with fresh grated mozzarella cheese. It balances the often spicy flavors of Mexican food perfectly, and the creaminess of freshly grated cheese can't be beat.  You can find hunks of part-skim mozzarella next to the queso cheeses in most grocery stores, and it's usually one of the better priced low-fat cheeses available. I like to grate this myself and freeze it in bags for easy use. 

Serve the burrito fixings with large tortillas and toppings of your choice.

Hope you enjoy! See you next week!

Dinner of the Week and Double Green Tip Numero Uno :)

Hi again! I hope everyone had a wonderful Fourth and enjoyed their long weekend!


So, as promised, the first week of the month I'm sharing the first ever


Double Green Tip!!!


Rags VS. Paper Towels


While paper towels may be convenient and easy to use, they aren't exactly earth/wallet friendly.  We use them for spills and cleaning in nearly every room in the house, and for a big cleaning job, I've often used between half and a whole roll.  And while they're not the most expensive thing on your grocery list, they ARE a constant cost that adds up, especially when you use them frequently. 


SO, to save a few trees and a few dollars, I've transitioned over to using T-shirt rags.  To make these, I simply take old T-shirts (i.e., my husband's high school band shirts or cheap thrift store finds) and cut them into large pieces, like so:

1.  Cut the sleeves off.
2.  Cut off the top of the shirt (it's easiest to cut through both the back and the front at the same time).
3.  Cut up the middle of the shirt (again, going through both sides).
4.  Cut slits in the sleeves.


I have been keeping a store of T-shirt rags in my laundry room, and am about to make more to keep in my kitchen.  So far, they work just as good or better than paper towels for dusting, cleaning bathrooms (including mirrors!), wiping up spills and wiping down counters.  The best part is, they can be wrung out and reused to finish a job, and then washed and reused indefinitely.  And it's a good way to recycle stained/torn T-shirts!


And now, the Dinner of the Week!


Whole Wheat No-Rise Crust Chicken Pizza

Sauce:

2 small cans low sodium tomato paste
1 large family size can of diced, stewed tomatoes (low sodium)
1 medium can fire-roasted tomatoes
1 t chopped garlic (fresh or dried)
3 T Italian herb mix
1/2 t crushed red pepper
1 t crushed rosemary
1 t salt alternative

Method:

Combine all in a large saucepan and simmer for about 1/2 an hour. I always cook a large amount, and freeze my extras in freezer ziplocks.  This makes it easy to break off a chunk and defrost it later. 

Crust:

1 c all-purpose flour
2 c whole wheat flour
3/4 c grated parmesan
1 (.25 oz) package active dry yeast
1 t low salt alternative like "No Salt"
2 T Italian herbs
1 t crushed rosemary
1/2 t crushed red pepper
1 t garlic powder or chopped fresh garlic (optional)
2 T oil
1 c warm water

extra: cornmeal and canola butter (a blend of 1/2 canola oil and 1/2 butter) for later.

Method:

In a medium mixing bowl, combine all the dry ingredients.  Then, mix in the oil and water using a spoon or the lowest setting on a mixer.  Once dough forms a ball, flour your hands and gently knead it for a few minutes. Either hand stretch or roll dough out to a large circle.  Sprinkle cornmeal on your pizza pan and place the dough on top of it.  Sauce and top it as desired and bake at 375 for 20-25 minutes.  It rises in the oven, so you can bake it right away!  As soon as it comes out, brush the crust with canola butter.

Suggested toppings:

chopped cooked chicken (great way to get rid of some leftovers!)
chopped onions
chopped canned jalapeno peppers
sliced mushrooms (fresh or canned)
hand shredded fresh spinach leaves
turkey pepperonis
parmesan (SO much better put on before you bake it!)
diced tomatoes

I hope you enjoy!!  See you next week!  :)

Hello again! sorry to be gone so long...

I have to say, it's nice to be back.  I've been giving myself a break while planning my wedding; I just couldn't focus on anything else, to be honest.  But now, I am VERY happily wed, and happily blogging again. 

As I start back, I'm going to change some things, add some method to my blogging madness. Each week, the husband and I will choose our favorite dinner and I'll share it with you.  I'm decided to categorize these recipes as "Dinner of the Week."  :) 

Every 1st week of the month, I'm going to include a feature called "Double-Green Tips" in my post.  Why are these monthly tips double green, you ask? Because they are personally tested and proven ways for you to save both natural and financial resources :)  I've already got the one for next week picked out, and I'm excited to share it with you!

THEN, every 3rd week of the month, I'll include a dessert recipe with my post, for my fellow sweet tooths out there :)

So, if anyone's still out there after my long AWOL period, here's the first "Dinner of the Week!"

DINNER OF THE WEEK

Chicken Curry



Ingredients:
1 1/2 T olive oil
1//2 onion, chopped
2 grated carrots
2 T flour
1 1/2 T curry
1/2 t cinnamon
1/2 t garlic
1/2 t ginger
1/2 t black pepper (fresh ground is best)
1/2 t crushed red pepper
1/2 t coriander

1/2 t cumin
1 1/2 c chicken broth or stock
2 1/2 c milk (for creamier consistency, use about 1 c half and half)
1/2 t salt
2 t lemon juice
4-6 cups of (preferably skinless) shredded, cooked chicken




Method:

For starters, I recommend  cooking a whole chicken yourself in a crockpot, with onions,  herbs, and spices of your choice.  It will be very tender and easy  to debone and shred.  The best way to shred it is to simply pull it off the bones, then tear and mush it into small bits with your fingers.  Messy, but effective!

Now, for the curry!
Saute the onions and 1/2 of the grated carrot in the oil, until onion is transparent.  Add flour, curry, and other spices.  Cook 1 minute.  Add broth and milk slowly while stirring.  Add salt and bring to a slow boil.  Add the rest of the carrot and lemon juice, then transfer to a blender/large food processor, and puree until carrot and onion bits are gone. Return to stovetop, bring to a simmer, and cover.  Let the curry simmer about 7-10 minutes, stirring occasionally to avoid browning on the bottom.  Add chicken, and simmer until it thickens, about 3-5 minutes.  Serve over rice, or with naan bread.  Serves 4-6.

Enjoy!  I'll see you next week!

sorry for the negligence...

So, once again school ate ALL my free time, and therefore my food blog is starving :(  BUT am stealing a few minutes away from my billion projects in order to share a few recipes with you.  

I Love Mexican Food.   I love all tings Hispanic, really- lingo, music, history, food, culture.  I've informed my fiance several times that if he's ever inclined to move to Mexico or Ecuador or Peru forever, I'm totally fine with that.  Unfortunately, there are things like education, jobs, and family keeping us here in the hot-dog-eating, English-speaking, US of A. (don't get me wrong, I'm very patriotic. I love hot dogs.)  
ANYways, last night I made Mexican for the two of us, and I thought I'd share it with you. :) Disfrutan! (Enjoy!)

Chicken Nachos


2 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 tomato
1/2 of a yellow onion
1 T Tobasco sauce
1 T garlic powder
1 T cilantro 
1 t crushed red pepper
salt and pepper to taste
Shredded cheese (I prefer a mix of part-skim Mozzarella, and sharp Cheddar.  Mozzarella is actually what they use in Latin/South America, not Cheddar.)
Tortilla chips of choice (I like Tostida's or Mission's whole grain restaurant style)
Cooking spray (use canola spray, it's healthier!)


Dice the tomato and onion.  Chop the chicken into small cubes.  Spray a large frying pan with cooking spray, bring to a medium heat, and add tomatoes and onions.  Once the onions become a little more translucent, add the chicken, Tobasco, and spices. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until the chicken is done.  Prepare a baking sheet by spreading foil over it, and spraying it with cooking spray.  Spread a single layer of tortilla chips on the sheet, and spoon the chicken mixture on top of the chips.  Try to aim for one piece of chicken or clump of veggies per chip.  Sprinkle with cheese.  If you want, you can layer more levels of chips, chicken, and cheese on the same sheet, or use multiple sheets of single layers.  I've done it both ways, with great success.  Multiple layers tend to turn out a little more gooey and chewy, and singles are more crispy.  Simply broil them until the cheese is bubbly, and enjoy! this makes about 3 big servings, or 4 normal ones.   


Homemade Guacamole


2 avocados
1/2 c lime juice
1 T cilantro
1 t garlic powder
salt and pepper to taste
1 T milk (for creaminess)


Scrape the meat out of the avocados, dice them, and toss all the ingredients into a food processor! I used my roommate's blender (not owning either a blender or food processor myself), and it turned out chunky, but really yummy.  If you try using a blender, I recommend using the pulse option and scraping down the sides frequently.  


YUM! Que rico!

I can have my green and eat it too (without grimacing!!)

So, I've tried one of the green smoothies that seem to be taking health food world by storm... and it wasn't bad. But despite the sweet pear-ey, grape-ey flavor of my smoothie, I just couldn't get over the GREEN color... Drinking something the shade of Shrek just isn't appealing.  

However, this morning, I figured out how to sneak some healthy green spinach into my Strawberry Frozen Yogurt Milkshake, and get a result in a pleasing, yummy-looking shade of MAUVE :)

I'll share my very simple little recipe for healthy, non-gross smoothies with you, should you wish to try it.  

Secretly Healthy Strawberry Milkshake

1/2 cup skim or lowfat milk

3-4 big scoops of strawberry nonfat frozen yogurt

1 1/2 cups frozen green smoothie

Combine everything and blend the heck out of it!

FYI: I used some frozen leftovers of my Pear Medley Smoothie in this, and it did nothing to hurt the strawberry flavor- if anything, it just added some extra sweetness.  :) But I'm pretty sure that any green smoothie that's not too crazy will work well.

busy-ness

So, I could go into this long spiel about how my life is crazy-insane, and how this week has been the craziest yet, but I'll spare you the details.  Just know that I'm sorry if this little blog gets neglected, but sometimes I actually have to prioritize... and that means NOT procrasti-blogging.  

BUT, I do have a few moments this evening (Happy April Fool's, by the way!) and thought I'd share one of the low-stress meals I made during this week's madness.  Enjoy!

Cinnamon Chili

Ingredients:

1 lb Ground Meat (I usually use 80-20 or 90-10 ground turkey, but I used ground chicken this time, and liked it better!) 

1-2 cans low sodium red kidney beans (use 2 if you like bean-ey chili, 1 if you like it meaty.)

1 can diced tomatoes, low sodium

1 small can tomato puree, low sodium (can you tell we're on a low-sodium diet at my house?)

1 can chicken broth, low sodium

1/4 c chopped yellow onion

chili powder

garlic powder

red pepper

cinnamon

Directions:

Brown the meat with the onions.  Drain the pan of any excess grease.  Stir in a tablespoon each of garlic and chili powder, and a teaspoon each of cinnamon and red pepper.  Allow to simmer on very low heat while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.  Pour the beans into a colander and rinse. Pour diced tomatoes, chicken broth, and tomato puree into a crockpot and stir until well mixed.  Add beans and meat and stir.  Simmer on low for 3-5 hours, stirring occasionally, and adding spices to taste.  

I personally enjoy eating my chili with sweet cornbread crumbled into it!

Smoothies

I've always loved smoothies.  When I was in middle and high school, whenever my mom and I were out shopping, we'd get smoothies for lunch or dinner instead of eating out.  We usually went to Smoothie King, and I always got the same thing- the "Frozen Goat."  Sounds weird, right?  It's bananas, frozen yogurt, and mocha... and it couldn't be better.  I frequently make a home-made version of it when I happen to have a little coffee left in the pot from the morning's brew.  Today, I did a twist on it, so I'll share that with you, as well as my recent experiment with green smoothies, inspired by one of my favorite foodie blogs.  Hope you enjoy!

Nutty Strawberry Smoothie

Ingredients:

2 large scoops of strawberry frozen yogurt (I used BlueBell's, which is non-fat and has hunks of frozen strawberries in it!)

      -this could be replaced with plain or vanilla yogurt (frozen or non) and frozen strawberries

2 T peanut butter (for the record, I ALWAYS use crunchy. I love the crunch, and it's usually lower in fat than reduced-fat creamy. For smoothies, I just blend a little longer and it smooths out.)

2 T flax seeds

1 c coffee, unsweetened

3-4 ice cubes (can be increased or lessened to preference.)

Directions:

Combine all of the ingredients except ice in the blender, and blend on high until smooth (1-2 minutes).  Add ice cubes and pulse 10-15 times, to make it "icey."

I like to place mine in a plastic container or cup, and stick it in the freezer uncovered for about 5-10 minutes. This chills it more and gives it a nice, thick, icey texture. :) This makes 1 large serving. 

As I was making this, I realized that since it contains grains (flax), protein (peanut butter and yogurt), dairy (yogurt), fruit, and coffee, this is the perfect balanced meal! 

Pear Medley Smoothie

2 small pears

1 c frozen unsweetened applesauce

Large handful of raw spinach leaves

¾ c grape juice from concentrate

3-4 T flax seeds

Directions:

Rinse pears, and cut them into quarters lengthwise.  Core them by cutting off the tough center edge from each quarter.  Cut them into large cubes, and set aside.  Place spinach and grape juice in blender and puree until there are no bits of spinach left.  Add pears and flax seed and puree again for a few minutes.  Finally add applesauce, and several ice cubes, if you like it icey (I do!) and pulse the blender 15 or so times, until the ice and applesauce are crushed.  This recipe makes about two servings.  

Enjoy!  My next post should be coming soon... I have a few projects I'm tweaking before I share them.

Second Promised Recipe...

Ok, so here's the second recipe I made during mid-terms week, but didn't have time to write about then.  I adapted it from a recipe found on Angel Food Ministries Website.  By the way, if anyone is looking for a way to trim their food budget without sacrificing quality or health, I highly recommend Angel Food Ministries.  Angel Food puts together a variety of different food packages and offers them for sale at discounted prices.  You can look at their menu online and order a month in advance.  The food is good, healthy food, even if it's not always what I would think to buy.  However, I like to look at it as a challenge to widen the variety of foods and recipes I can cook!  This was one (VERY successful) attempt to do just that.

"Standing Up" Roast Pork Chops with Veggies (for crockpot)

-Pork Chops in 4 oz. portions (use as many as you like/ will eat, these portions are very flexible.)
-1/2 medium to large yellow onion
-2-3 tbsp butter 
-Salt, Pepper, and your favorite seasonings to taste.   I used Garlic, Seasoning Salt, Cracked Black Pepper, and Montreal Steak Seasoning (Mrs. Dash.)
 -Carrots
-Celery


Healthy Hints:
My mother-in-law makes a mix of half butter, half canola oil, which she refrigerates in a container and uses in place of butter.  It still has the buttery flavor, but the bad fats are cut in half, and it melts and spreads like a dream.  Also, I recently discovered "No-Salt," which is a fairly cost-effective and tasty salt alternative.  


Directions:
Place pork chops in crockpot skinny side up, like a wheel.  To help them stay standing, place small balls of aluminum foil between them, leaving some space to fill in with veggies later. Cut onion into slices like rings, then cut a slit on one side.  Arrange the curly onion pieces over the tops of the pork chops.  Chop carrots and celery into bite-size pieces and drop into empty spaces around pork chops.  Drop dollops of butter over onions, pork chops, and veggies, and sprinkle liberally with salt, pepper, and seasonings.  Cook on Low for 6-8 hours.  I served it with rice and a side salad, which worked great! It does need light, less flavor-intense sides, since the veggies and pork absorb so much of the flavor.  This is a great dish for meat lovers who have trouble with veggies, because they become so soft, and catch a lot of the meat flavor.  


Enjoy! :)

A-Mazing Apple Muffins

So, it's definitely about time I finally delivered on my promised blog :)  This past Monday night, I made apple muffins; it really reminded me of when I used to have "Muffin Mondays" in high school, and make baked goods for the week on Monday morning before school.  Anyways, these muffins were basically a severely doctored version of a mix.  However, I think the same idea would probably work with a good basic muffin recipe.

Apple Muffins

2-3 small apples of choice (I used Pink Lady)
1 packet apple cinnamon oatmeal
1 package apple cinnamon muffin mix (I used "Jiffy")
  - include whatever water, milk, or egg amounts are recommended on the package
1 extra egg
1/4 cup milk


Core and chop the apples into very small pieces, about the size of "Legos," keeping the peels on.  In a large bowl, mix all the rest of the ingredients using a spoon or spatula.  Place in greased muffin tin and cook according to directions on muffin mix package.  However, due to the extra moisture, they may require a few additional minutes.  A toothpick inserted should come out sticky, but without any wet dough on it.  I recommend leaving them out to cool overnight, or for several hours, so that they don't get too moist and sticky in a container.  


These muffins are amazing both warm with butter, and cold with a sack lunch! (If I do say so myself!)

preview...

So, I've cooked two things this week that I can hardly wait to share, but since all my professors have decided to bombard me with tests right before Spring Break, I've forbidden myself to blog about them until my tests are done.  However, I can't resist a little preview... I made some A-mazing Apple Muffins on Monday night, and on Tuesday night I made Pork Chops and Veggies in my crockpot, and it was such a success that my fiance asked me to make more for a "second dinner" later that night, instead of asking for dessert!  Needless to say, I really can't wait to give up writing about educational philosophers for a week, and write about these recipes :)

foodie blog post number one...

So, since becoming a slightly more regular blogger, I've decided to create a secondary blog to catalog my foodie experiments.  I'm hoping this will help both my personal blog and my new food blog have more coherent themes.  I'm really looking forward to being more purposeful in trying out/modifying new recipes, and recording the results. 

I had hoped to make my first post about this fantastic homemade garlic lover's pizza that I slaved over Saturday night, but sadly, it turned out pretty tasteless.  I had counted on garlic providing the main flavor to the crust and vegetables, but I had not counted on my generic jar of garlic being essentially flavor-less.  This was a real tragedy, since both my fiance and I LOVE garlic AND pizza.  So, my first short post will be a cooking moral; if something usually comes in small packages, and the generic offers a huge package for a small price, don't buy it.  It's liable to have more food coloring than flavor.